Formlessness in space and time
In chapter six of the Sun Tzu text, we read: Therefore, when you induce others to construct a formation while you yourself are formless, then you are concentrated while the opponent is divided. (Cleary...
View ArticleFear of planning
Another post on research into the physiology of orientation. “Planning may start in brain’s amygdala, study says,” reporting on research conducted at Cambridge University. The amygdala is most...
View ArticleCoherent, Credible, and Wrong
The best strategist is not the one who knows he must deceive the enemy, but the one who knows how to do it. Polish SciFi master Stanislaw Lem (1921 – 2006) We often think of Soviet doctrine as tanks...
View ArticleHappy Birthday, Alice
Sun Tzu was a great fan of intelligence and spies in particular — check out Chapter 13 if you need a refresher — because it’s much easier to operate inside opponents’ OODA loops if you already know...
View ArticleIs it agility or adaptability?
I tend to think of “agility” as adaptability with a time dimension, that is, the ability to adapt more rapidly to new situations than can competitors or opponents. That may not, however, be the only...
View ArticleBoyd’s OODA “Loop”: What and why?
As Frans Osinga pointed out in his 2006 examination of John Boyd’s philosophy of conflict, Science, strategy and war: The strategic theory of John Boyd, the OODA loop is the best known but probably...
View ArticleConfusion and disorder
Even if you’ve seen this, it’s well worth a second look. Even if you know what the OODA loop is — especially if you know what the “loop” is — watch this video. Chuck was present at the creation, and...
View Article